the inspiration of the Tuscan struggle for liberty. Aurora Leigh, her largest, and perhaps the most popular of her longer poems, appeared in 1856.  In 1850 The Sonnets from the Portuguese—­the history of her own love-story, thinly disguised by its title—­had appeared.  In 1860 she issued a coll. ed. of her poems under the title, Poems before Congress.  Soon thereafter her health underwent a change for the worse; she gradually lost strength, and d. on June 29, 1861.  She is generally considered the greatest of English poetesses.  Her works are full of tender and delicate, but also of strong and deep, thought.  Her own sufferings, combined with her moral and intellectual strength, made her the champion of the suffering and oppressed wherever she found them.  Her gift was essentially lyrical, though much of her work was not so in form.  Her weak points are the lack of compression, an occasional somewhat obtrusive mannerism, and frequent failure both in metre and rhyme.  Though not nearly the equal of her husband in force of intellect and the higher qualities of the poet, her works had, as might be expected on a comparison of their respective subjects and styles, a much earlier and wider acceptance with the general public.  Mrs. B. was a woman of singular nobility and charm, and though not beautiful, was remarkably attractive.  Miss Mitford (q.v.) thus describes her as a young woman:  “A slight, delicate figure, with a shower of dark curls falling on each side of a most expressive face; large, tender eyes, richly fringed by dark eyelashes, and a smile like a sunbeam.”

Life by J.H.  Ingram (1889); Letters of R. Browning and E.B.  Browning (1889). Coll. ed. of her works, see above.

BROWNING, ROBERT (1812-1889).—­Poet, only s. of Robert B., a man of fine intellect and equally fine character, who held a position in the Bank of England, was b. in Camberwell.  His mother, to whom he was ardently attached, was the dau. of a German shipowner who had settled in Dundee, and was alike intellectually and morally worthy of his affection.  The only other member of the family was a younger sister, also highly gifted, who was the sympathetic companion of his later years.  In his childhood he was distinguished by his love of poetry and natural history.  At 12 he had written a book of poetry which he destroyed when he could not find a publisher.  After being at one or two private schools, and showing an insuperable dislike to school life, he was ed. by a tutor, and thereafter studied Greek at Univ.  Coll., London.  Through his mother he inherited some musical talent, and composed settings, for various songs.  His first pub. was Pauline, which appeared anonymously in 1833, but attracted little attention.  In 1834 he paid his first visit to Italy, in which so much of his future life was to be passed.  The publication of Paracelsus in 1835, though the